Does the mechanical girl dream of the Messiah?

Constructs do not suffocate, as their functioning does not require oxygen.

It didn't matter whether the Archlich knew about this. Even if it had such knowledge and cognition, it couldn't make a rational analysis in its confused and crazy state. But its instinct as a strong man would lead it to do the right thing. For example, if it was meaningless to simply strangle the construct's neck, it would do something else.

Use this as a medium to infuse negative energy into it.

“Gah…ah…”

The entire set of vocal equipment is located inside the neck, just like humans, and cannot be used when the throat is strangled, which makes her lose the ability to speak - in this case, the ability to express pain. The negative energy poured in by the invisible hand gradually dissipates the regular prayers in Lusa's body. Humans may lack the concept of this feeling, so let's put it this way, what is happening to Lusa Efayeret is similar to the phenomenon of human hypoxia.

As a result of excessive imitation of humans, she opened her mouth and tried to breathe, just like a human who was about to suffocate, but to no avail. What happened to her was not lack of oxygen. Her legs kicked meaninglessly, her soles unable to touch the ground, kicking the air over and over again. Her chin was forced up by an invisible hand and looked up at the sky, tears overflowing from the corners of her bloodshot eyes.

——Will I die?

If humans suffocate, they will fall into a coma. If they still can't breathe after falling into a coma...

——Will I die?

…will die.

The waving arms, the kicking legs, and the tears in the eyes are all symbols of escaping death.

Puppets are different from humans - if a puppet dies, it can be recreated. Ordinary puppets will not even leave their memories, but more sophisticated puppets have the power to save their consciousness on the server. When the time comes, just download the consciousness and it will be exactly the same as before. In the current situation of the global network collapse, consciousness cannot be uploaded at any time, so there will always be a period of memory loss. If there is any difference, it is probably only here. It doesn't seem to be a big deal.

So, "death" does not exist for puppets, right?

——No, no... It's not like that...

“Haaaa…Haaaa…Ugh…!”

So what's the difference?

——Different memories or something…changed consciousness or something…lack of happiness or something…disconnected experiences or something…losing time with her or something…!

Is that so? That’s how you judge it.

Different elite puppets have different understandings of "death" - the "hunters" and "executioners" that you have seen before, they neither think about this kind of thing nor think it is a big deal. They despise death based on their personality settings. As long as they can get up again and again, and fight again and again, a little bit of memory gap is nothing.

There are exceptions, such as "Opera House".

People with more unconventional thinking will occasionally think about other things.

What it's like on the moon, what it's like under the earth, what the ocean is like—and what death is like.

It's obvious that he is just a very random thing, whose personality can be changed by manipulating the data, and whose body is just a bunch of parts that can be replaced frequently. Yet, he is so sensitive to the loss of memory that he cannot accept it.

Is that why you resist dying so much?

——I…I…

Stretch your palms toward the sky, even though you know it is an act of futility.

There was nothing there, no moon, no stars, only a permanent poisonous cloud that would never dissipate.

Want to give up?

——Anyone is fine…

Do you have to do this even if you know no one will come back?

——…Save me.

——You shouted for help——

"Let! Me! Go!!!"

As the roar came, a figure also arrived as expected - white armor, white sword, a dream-like existence in this dim world. She raised the heavy sword high and slashed at the lich head-on!

If you cry for help loudly, a hero will come, right?

"elder sister!"

Feeling someone holding her from behind with arms and hearing a familiar voice in her ears, Lusa Efayeret opened her eyes again, only to see a tearful face, which was no more unfamiliar than the voice.

"Leah...Leah?!"

She was so surprised that she lost her composure and screamed. Rosa stared blankly at the elite puppet that was hugging her with one arm.

"Why……"

"If you have any questions, talk to me later."

The vibration from below allowed Lusa to roughly grasp the current situation - she was on the back of a warhorse, with her "sister", "Arbitrator" Leah Efayeret on one side, and someone holding the reins on the other side.

Or rather, the meticulous Ella Hepper.

"Get rid of the lich over there first, and then consider other things!"

Following her gaze, I looked along.

There, the majestic white knight was charging towards the great lich.

Chapter 34: The Dance of the White Knight (Part 1)

"...die."

"—!"

Lunicia said nothing, just maintained her charge while lifting the giant sword upwards - the pure metal block weighing more than two hundred pounds was as nimble as down in her hand. As the tip of the sword was raised, the orange-red flames wrapped around it burned slowly, a burning sound suddenly rang out in the air, and then a puff of black smoke dissipated from the blade and became invisible.

The enemy is a lich - even if it looks like a nearly disabled lich for some reason - Lunicia will not underestimate it at all. Long before the official battle, she has already bestowed a blessing commonly known as a "holy weapon" on the "Avenger", which can allow conventional weapons to be used as magic weapons and greatly increase the power of magic weapons. It was with this move that Lunicia resolved the Invisible Hand.

——Using the "Mage's Hand" as a medium, can he release the power of "Paralyzing Touch"...

He slashed at the great lich with another sword, and the sacred fire filled with anger tore through the aura of death, but failed to directly hit the great lich's body. After being blocked by the thick black air, the great lich only used the Scroll of Silent Whisper to block it slightly, and easily deflected the sword. This degree was still within Lunicia's expectations. She immediately covered her eyes with her other hand, took a step back, and avoided the subsequent claw attack and "Fear Gaze" with nimble steps.

Even if the opponent is seriously injured, the huge difference in status still exists, and Lunicia dare not try to directly resist the "fearful gaze" from the great lich. As the paladin's training continues to progress, while gaining more powerful strength, the escaping power will turn into aura and continue to shroud the paladin, protecting him and his teammates, making their will more resolute, and able to effectively resist the negative effects on the spirit - such as charm and fear.

With Lunicia's current level, the divine light she releases can enhance the willpower of her friends around her and greatly reduce the effects of her charm, but it is still not enough to resist the terror that penetrates deep into her soul. The enhancement of willpower also has a suppressive effect on the fear itself, but Lunicia doesn't dare to gamble at least for now, as she doesn't know what spells the other party has left to release.

The White Knight and the Great Lich, one wins in exquisite swordsmanship and the Holy Victory over Evil, the other wins in deep death will and great magical powers. A normal person with not so strong power, with the advantage of weapon in his hand offset by the Scroll of Silence, can actually rely on combat skills to fight against a mad Great Lich on equal terms. In a short period of time, it is hard to see which side can gain a clear advantage. This is indeed a bit surprising for Lunicia herself.

This is of course not only due to the decline in the power of the Great Lich, nor is it just the advantage brought by Lunicia's swordsmanship. It also benefits from Lunicia's understanding of the knowledge level of the existence of "Lich".

Unlike the Mummy Lord, a higher-level undead that a normal person would probably never encounter in their lifetime - and no one would go to an unopened tomb or pyramid to provoke a mummy - and who is not very common, the Lich, as the pinnacle of the undead and a legendary wizard with a low moral level who is very likely to have fallen, is often a frequent visitor in various courses about the undead, and will be mentioned no matter what.

As for priests and paladins, who had quite a few tasks to dispel the undead and deal with the dead, even if no one expected them to actually fight against liches, they would always spend a lot of time in class to preach knowledge about liches, including their abilities, characteristics, and the very representative "life box" system. In a subtle way, even if Lunisia had never - and could not have - actual combat experience with liches, she would always remember the content of those courses.

What's more, she was originally a very talented paladin.

Of course, the person involved is currently busy fighting with swords, and has to keep dodging the terrifying aura that can kill or maim anyone who touches it. He has no extra energy to care about such things, and the same can't be said for bystanders.

Take Ella Hepper, for example.

"So, you are 'Opera'... Lusa Ephayeret?"

"Oh, yes, yes, I never thought my fame would spread so far and wide. It really makes me unable to control myself..."

"Then I won't waste my time talking to you."

Ella's words shut up Lusa's long speech - of course, she didn't dare to refute, especially with the purple sword at her neck and her busy trying to comfort her crying sister in her arms - she could only choose to shut up and let Ella take control of the topic.

"Let your men - those puppets are your men, right?"

The tone was not gentle at all, even though Ella was using honorifics.

"...As you see?"

"Have them give up attacking the Marie Principality Army and focus their firepower on the undead forces of 'Legacy of Natya'. It would be best if they could use some of their firepower to attack Alexis."

"What? Do you know what this request means?!"

"I don't know, and I don't care."

The sword was still on her neck, but this time Lusa Ephayet was much tougher and continued to argue:

"They are now exchanging fire with two parties at the same time! Even if both 'Legacy of Natya' and the Principality of Mari' are in the middle of a melee, they don't have time to identify who their enemies are. Directly suppressing one of them will only increase the damage rate. The Principality of Mari will not reason before swinging their swords!"

"So what?" Ella's expression remained unchanged, and her tone remained unchanged, neither cold nor gentle. "The increase in the usage rate of consumables is not a big deal for someone like you, right?"

"Calling them like that... is so disrespectful...!"

"Or I can cut open your skin right now, analyze your insides, and see what kind of structure you are operating with. In the battles you lead, casualties are acceptable, so if it is for your own wishes, losses are not something to be avoided. Then things are very simple. My current hope - request is to let my wishes be executed as your own wishes."

"you……"

"I have no right to make decisions on behalf of my savior. It is not my responsibility to investigate the matter afterwards, so I can only make a promise to you - as long as you follow my instructions, I will not chop off your head. How about it, the conditions are generous, right?"

"..."

The ground beneath him was still shaking from the galloping of the warhorses, and he could see the situation on both sides of the battlefield at a glance: on one side, the three armies were still in a melee, and it was not very clear, only the explosions, lasers, and the constantly rising dust and smoke could show how fierce the battle was; on the other side was the Archlich Alexis, whose opponents were not only the Holy Knights, but also the "Special Surveillance Subject No. 2" who flew in from nowhere. The arrival of the reinforcements did not tilt the situation in the direction of the Holy Knights. As the Archlich began to put more magic into the battle, the Archlich's side began to show the advantage.

Lusa was silent for a moment, but this silence did not last long.

"...Then let's do as you say."

“A wise choice.”

Ella smiled, turned her horse's direction, and galloped straight towards the great lich.

Within the command network, the "Opera House" began to issue orders to the subordinate units of the command tower.

………………………………has been connected to the local area network…………

...Has entered the communication channel...Based on your permissions, the command module is opened for you...

...Do you want to start communicating now? ...Yes/No...

…………yes…………

——"...In summary, that's about it. Forget about the extras who are dressed up in fancy clothes and get ready to have the employees clean up the trash."

——"Sir, are you serious...?"

——"This is a level one order issued within this network. Actors should not have the right to refuse it."

——"Yes, I understand."

——"Remember to fire at the top player and see if you can shoot through its head."

--"……Understood."

——"Why, any other questions?"

——"…Your Excellency is the supreme commander of this operation. As an assistant officer, I and other lower-level command nodes have no right to comment on any orders issued by Your Excellency during the operation, nor do we have the right to report or confirm the content of the orders to higher-level superiors after the operation."

--"uh-huh."

——"Lady Leah will be with you as well."

——"I will take her back with me... She may not be intact, but she will definitely..."

——"Our memories are irrelevant. Originally, we, the second-level puppets with limited mental capacity, would have our memories archived after returning. We would be reset to a blank mind before being sent to the next mission. Even if the 'us' on the server are coherent, the us offline are still just a small experience."

——"What do you want to say, exactly..."

——"——You must keep your promise at the beginning and not forget anything, not even a single performance."

——"..."

——"I wish you good luck in martial arts."

——“…You too.”

...End of communication...

...disconnected...offline proxy command mode activated...command is handed over to the auxiliary command puppet No. 001713...

…………Zizi…………Process aborted…………

……

…………

........................

"drink……!!!"

The giant sword slashed upwards at an angle, and was once again blocked by the surging black tide. By the time it cut through the black tide and was able to get close to the great lich, it was already prepared. It stretched out its inky black jade-like bone palm and easily took the blade.

At the same time, Ashetherin could no longer restrict the movement of the Archlich's other hand, so she had to somersault backwards to prevent the Archlich from counterattacking immediately after breaking free from the restrictions.

when----! ! !

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!!!

It was clearly the repeated collisions between the giant sword and the skeleton, and the giant sword and the book, but it made a terrifying sound like steel smashing against each other. The power was so terrifying, it was no less than that of Sestin who showed mercy during the war in Nosavi. Lunicia almost had an illusion, as if the one fighting her in close combat was not a charred skeleton only two meters high, but some kind of larger and harder metal monster.